Capital One Cup semi-final second leg, Wednesday 7.45pm

Swansea City buy into Michael Laudrup's vision of cutting to the quick

Over the past three months Michael Laudrup's Swansea City have lost only three times in 19 matches. Photograph: Jason Cairnduff/Action Images

The one problem with a successful manager, as Swansea City know from first-hand experience, is that it is a matter of time before other clubs start sniffing around. Roberto Martínez and Brendan Rodgers have both been prised from the Liberty Stadium in recent years and, with Swansea on the brink of a place in the Capital One Cup final and enjoying themselves in the Premier League, it is hardly surprising that Michael Laudrup's name is being mentioned in connection with the biggest jobs in Europe.

Chelsea, who go into Wednesday night's Capital One semi-final second leg at the Liberty Stadium 2-0 down, and Real Madrid, whom Laudrup won the last of his five La Liga titles with as a player after a glittering spell with Barcelona, have both emerged as possible destinations for a man whose managerial stock has risen considerably during his short time in South Wales.

An ambitious and exciting appointment in the wake of Rodgers's departure to Liverpool in the summer, Laudrup has proved to be much more than a sexy name. Through the combination of some shrewd acquisitions in the transfer market – shrewd barely does it justice in the case of Michu – and subtle tactical changes to the easy-on-the-eye team that Rodgers moulded, Laudrup has turned Swansea into a more incisive attacking unit going forward and a tougher team to break down at the other end.

The 4-3-3 formation favoured by Rodgers has, more often than not, evolved into a 4-2-3-1 under Laudrup, with the attacking wide men encouraged to come infield, link up and play two- or three-touch, rather than hug the touchline and run at full-backs. Arguably the biggest change is the pace of Swansea's buildup. With Rodgers in charge, Swansea would shift the ball back and forth across the back four in their own half patiently waiting for a chance to pull the opposition out of position. Under Laudrup, the players are told to look for a forward pass much earlier.

Ashley Williams, the Swansea captain and central defender, provides a case in point. This season Williams has made, on average, 49 passes a game. Last season the figure was 70. It is a huge difference and what Laudrup envisaged during an interview with the Guardian in pre-season.

"What is the most difficult thing when you start with the ball in the back four? It's to give it to somebody who is facing the opponent's goal," Laudrup said. "Sometimes we have to play forward to give it back. But every pass is for a reason, always with the idea to penetrate."

If there was a degree of scepticism among some players about elements of Laudrup's approach at the outset – which is always going to be the case when a popular manager moves on — the standard of performances and results across the last three months in particular (during which Swansea have suffered only three defeats in 19 matches and won at Anfield, the Emirates and Stamford Bridge) has made it easy for the squad to buy into the vision of a 48-year-old Dane who is still regarded as the best player in training.

While it is easy to understand why leading clubs could be looking at Laudrup, it is much more difficult to imagine him jumping up and down at the prospect of managing Chelsea or Real Madrid.

Laudrup's approach to management is coloured by everything he achieved as a player and also his desire to enjoy life outside of football. He has said "you won't see me on the bench when I'm 60", spoken of his desire "to do other things" and openly conceded: "I don't have that ambition to think: 'Oh, one day I would like to go to the top.'"

He explained that he saw what being in charge of Barcelona did to Pep Guardiola, his former team-mate and a close friend. "I played with him for four years and I know him quite well as a person. I wasn't surprised [when he left]," Laudrup said. "He gives 100% and he's also a thinker. I also sometimes think a lot, where we can improve. And when you think a lot, you become tired. Here is one thing, imagine Barcelona: every three days you play against a team that wants to play the game of the year and beat you. You have players and a lot of egos. You see [Pep] when he started and then you see him after four years. I said to him: 'How old are you now?'"

Laudrup, in other words, has plenty of reasons to be content with life at Swansea, especially when there is a trip to Wembley on the horizon. Not that he is taking anything for granted against Chelsea.

"Of course this game is important to me but it's because I know how important it is to everyone else," Laudrup said. "In the first game we knew it was going to be tough but we hoped for a good result; we got an extraordinary result. But everyone realises there is still a long way to go."